During a phone interview I had this week with Nebraska junior defensive lineman Jared Crick in advance of today’s game against Colorado in Lincoln, I found it interesting the sure-fire All-American admitted that the school-record 57-yard field goal by teammate Alex Henery that beat CU in 2008 might have been a 1-in-10 chance effort.

Of course, when I stood on the sideline, directly in line with the crossbar, I thought the odds might be 1-in-50 — or worse. In a game, Henery had never booted a 50-yarder.

“It was definitely iffy,” Crick recalled. “We knew Alex has the leg and could do it. We’d seen him make them in practice. But this was under pressure. I was just hoping he could get it there (from that distance), to have a chance. I listened for the sound and I could tell he hit it really good.

“Maybe it was a 1-in-10 chance, but who cares? It was good. And it was for us.”

In another phone interview, Nebraska senior nickel back Eric Hagg told me: “Right before Alex’s kick, I was thinking, ‘I can’t believe this is happening.’ Then when it was in the air, I thought, ‘He might just make it.” It just kept sailing through the air.”

Comments Off on NU’s Crick: Henery’s 2008 kick might have been 1-in-10 chance

Mike McNeill, Nebraska’s senior tight end and Zebra back, told me in a phone interview this week that he looks forward to a final battle against Colorado’s defense in today’s game in Lincoln.

McNeill said he has been especially impressed throught the years with Buffs cornerbacks Jimmy Smith and Jalil Brown, who also are seniors.

“I know some of the guys on the back end, their (senior) cornerbacks Brown and Smith,” McNeill said. “They both have played well against us. They have good size and speed, so any time you have that combination of athleticism, you’re going to be a tough matchup.”

Colorado senior wide receiver Scotty McKnight let me in on a little secret this week when I chatted with him for the story about the friendship he has with quarterback Cody Hawkins that ran in today’s Denver Post.

McKnight said Colorado coaches were closer to pulling off the redshirt of Hawkins in 2006 than the media or public knew.

“It’s great that Cody and I came in together and we’re going out together,” McKnight said. “But it almost didn’t happen that way. They were close to playing him his freshman year.

“I told Cody, ‘You can’t let them take your redshirt’ because I wanted us to play together for four years. They even considered pulling his redshirt in the last game, against Nebraska, because B-Jack (quarterback Bernard Jackson) got banged up. That would have made me so mad.”

Comments Off on CU’s McKnight: Cody Hawkins’ redshirt almost pulled in 2006